System for displaying a plurality of card-mounted articles

ABSTRACT

A plurality of card-mounted articles may be placed on a merchandising display peg by having a hollow mounting rod passed through an opening in each of the cards, so that the plurality of cards can be lifted and moved simultaneously. An end of the hollow mounting tube is placed over the outer end of the peg, and the card mounted articles are slid off the tube onto the peg. Typically, the cards are mounted on a tube in the package in which they are shipped and stored, or the tube can be put into place at the retail store. The container may have a fold down portion at its end to facilitate placing the hollow mounting rod into the openings in the cards.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates to card-mounted articles and a system for placing a plurality of such card-mounted articles on a merchandising display peg, simultaneously. In particular, the present invention is related to the provision of a mounting means for hanging a plurality of card-mounted articles at one time onto a merchandising display peg, from which the card-mounted articles may be removed one at a time for retail sale.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION:

[0002] In the retail business, many articles are sold which are mounted on cards, with the cards being placed or threaded or hung onto merchandising display pegs. Typically, such articles are relatively inexpensive, and typically such articles are sold through very many different retail channels of trade, depending on the nature of articles which are card mounted. Examples include many items of hard goods such as batteries, cup hooks, electrical adapters, screw anchors, writing pens, pencil leads, adhesive tape, and so on. Clearly, such goods may be sold in specialty stores of all sorts, convenience stores, and the like; or they may be sold at one very large department store.

[0003] Nonetheless, all such items have one thing in common; they are all mounted on individual cards by being attached thereto in one way or anther or encased in a formed plastic display housing. Each card has a hole or opening in its upper region so that it may be threaded onto and hung from a merchandising display peg.

[0004] Typically, card-mounted articles of the sort described above are mounted in quantities of five or six, or a dozen or more, cards on a single peg. Typically, such card-mounted articles are shipped and stored in boxes or containers, also in quantities of five or six, or a dozen or more, per container. Moreover, it is usual that the retailer will not replace articles on the merchandising display peg for sale until the last one from the previous bunch of card-mounted articles has been sold, or at least until there may be only one or two such articles left on the peg. Quite often, the capacity for the number of articles on the peg may be greater by one or two more card-mounted articles than are typically shipped in a container thereof.

[0005] Up to the present time, hanging card-mounted articles for retail display and sale thereof on merchandising display pegs has been very labour intensive. Most often, the cards on which the card-mounted articles are placed for retail display and sale, are removed one or two at a time from the box or container in which they have been shipped and stored, and are threaded one or two at a time onto the merchandising display peg. Indeed, it is not possible, in most circumstances, to place more than one or two cards on a merchandising display peg at any one time.

[0006] Obviously, if a number of different card mounted articles are to be re-stocked onto the merchandising display pegs, and they can only be placed one or two at a time on their respective merchandising display pegs, considerable time and therefore considerable labour costs may be involved. This, in turn, may require the retail merchant to employ more individuals for re-stocking purposes than the merchandiser would like to do, because the cost of more individuals increases the merchant's overhead and decreases the merchant's profits.

[0007] On the other hand, the merchant can ill afford not to have card-mounted articles displayed for retail sale, at all times; and thus, the retail merchant has no choice but to constantly monitor the display racks where the merchandising display pegs are mounted, and to employ someone to continually re-stock those pegs.

[0008] Merchandising display pegs are typically a rod, which may have a slight upper bend at its outer extremity, or a double rod—which is actually a rod that is formed into an elongated “U”, with the loop or bight of the “U” being at the outer end. Such pegs also typically have a slight upward bend at the outer end.

[0009] The cards on which card-mounted articles are placed typically have either a circular hole in their upper portion, or a triangular-shaped opening in their upper region. Obviously, those cards which have a triangular-shaped opening will fit over either a double rod peg, or a single rod peg, whereas cards which have only a circular opening will fit only over a single rod peg. No matter what, the task remains that each card-mounted article must, in turn, be hung with its card on a merchandising display peg for retail display and sale.

[0010] Because such card-mounted articles are typically high volume, low profit merchandise, a system for placing a plurality of card-mounted articles on a merchandising display peg simultaneously would save time, and thereby should decrease the overhead costs to a retail merchant—if not absolutely, at least on a per item basis for accounting and profit calculation purposes.

[0011] The present invention quite unexpectedly provides such a system at very little additional cost to the manufacturer or packager of the card-mounted articles, and therefore at very little or no additional cost to the retail merchant.

[0012] Indeed, as will be noted hereafter, the present invention provides a hollow mounting rod which may be combined with a plurality of card-mounted articles before or after they are placed into a container, depending on the nature of the article and the apparatus at hand whereby the card-mounted articles are normally placed into their containers for shipping and storage.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0013] Accordingly, the present invention provides the combination of a plurality of card-mounted articles and a hollow mounting rod.

[0014] Each card carries merchandise carried thereon for retail display and sale. Each card has an upper region and an opening through the thickness of the card in the upper region, whereby each card is adapted to be hung on a merchandising display peg for retail display of the card-mounted article, by having a merchandising display peg passed through the opening of each individual card.

[0015] The hollow mounting rod is passed through the openings in the plurality of cards, whereby the plurality of cards may be lifted and moved simultaneously by lifting and moving the hollow mounting rod.

[0016] The hollow mounting rod has a cross-sectional configuration and size such that it will pass through the openings in the plurality of cards, and such that it may be temporarily placed over at least the outer end of a merchandising display peg.

[0017] The present invention provides a system for placing a plurality of card-mounted articles on a merchandising display peg for retail sale, which comprises the merchandising display peg and the combination described above.

[0018] Accordingly, the plurality of card-mounted articles may be placed on the merchandising display peg by placing a first end of the hollow mounting rod over at least the outer end of the merchandising display peg, sliding a plurality of cards off the hollow mounting rod, and withdrawing the hollow mounting rod away from the merchandising display peg so as to leave the plurality of card-mounted articles hung thereon.

[0019] The system which is provided by the present invention may further comprise a shipping container in which the plurality of card-mounted articles has been placed for shipping and storage purposes, and from which the plurality of cards may be lifted and moved simultaneously by lifting and moving the hollow mounting rod.

[0020] The hollow mounting rod may have been passed through the openings of the plurality of cards prior to the cards having been placed in the container.

[0021] However, in keeping with a further aspect of the present invention, the container has a foldable portion in at least one end thereof, so that the foldable portion faces the openings in the cards when the plurality of cards has been placed in the container. Thus, the plurality of cards may be placed in the container before the hollow mounting rod is passed through the openings of the plurality of cards.

[0022] The system may provide that the hollow mounting rod is passed through the openings of the plurality of cards prior to the foldable portion of the container being closed so as to permit the container to be sealed.

[0023] Alternatively, the system may provide for the hollow mounting rod to be passed through the openings of the plurality of cards after the container has been unsealed and after the at least one foldable portion of the container has been folded down so as to permit access to the openings of the plurality of cards within the container.

[0024] The hollow mounting rod may have a circular cross-section, or it may have a triangular cross-section. Moreover, the hollow mounting rod may be flared at at least one end thereof.

[0025] Typically, the hollow mounting rod is extruded from a plastics material, which may be chosen from the group which consists of polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyvinylchloride, vinyl, and co-polymers and mixtures thereof.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS:

[0026] The novel features which are believed to be characteristic of the present invention, as to its structure, organization, use and method of operation, together with further objectives and advantages thereof, will be better understood from the following drawings in which a presently preferred embodiment of the invention will now be illustrated by way of example. It is expressly understood, however, that the drawings are for the purpose of illustration and description only and are not intended as a definition of the limits of the invention. Embodiments of this invention will now be described by way of example in association with the accompanying drawings in which:

[0027]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a container having a plurality of card-mounted articles therein, and showing optional cross-sections of the hollow mounting rod to be employed;

[0028]FIG. 2 is a view similar to FIG. 1, but showing the container fully opened;

[0029]FIG. 3 shows a plurality of card-mounted articles being removed from a container;

[0030]FIG. 4 shows the plurality of card-mounted articles prior to being placed on a merchandising display peg;

[0031]FIG. 5 shows a plurality of card-mounted articles as they are about to be placed on a merchandising display peg; and

[0032]FIG. 6 show the plurality of card-mounted articles in the process of being placed on the merchandising display peg.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS:

[0033] The novel features which are believed to be characteristic of the present invention, as to its structure, organization, use and method of operation, together with further objectives and advantages thereof, will be better understood from the following discussion.

[0034] Throughout the following discussion, like reference numerals are employed for the same or similar items as they are described and as they may be shown in the various figures being described.

[0035] In each of FIGS. 1, 2, and 3, a typical container 12 is shown having a plurality of card-mounted articles placed therein for shipping and storage. The card-mounted articles are, in this case, adhesive tape dispensers, but they could be any merchandise which is capable of being mounted in one way or another to a card for retail display and sale.

[0036] Each of the card-mounted articles 14 is mounted on a respective display card 16. Each display card 16 has an opening 18 formed in the upper region thereof, through the thickness of the card.

[0037] The shape of the opening 18 may be any shape, but typically the shape of the opening 18 is either circular or triangular. Obviously, the triangular shape will fit over both a double rod mounting display peg and a single rod mounting display peg, but a circular shape will not fit over a double rod mounting display peg. In any event, after the cards are placed over a merchandising display peg, they are said to be hung on the peg.

[0038] The present invention provides a hollow mounting rod which may be circular rod 20 or triangular rod 22. As can be seen in any of the figures, the rod 20, or 22, is passed through the openings 18 in each of the plurality of cards 16. Accordingly, by suitably lifting the rod 20, or 22, the plurality of cards which is associated with any hollow mounting rod may be lifted simultaneously, and moved simultaneously. Typically, this means that the hollow mounting rod 20, or 22, will be lifted while being maintained in a relatively horizontal orientation, such as is shown in FIG. 3.

[0039] The cross-sectional configuration and size of each hollow mounting rod 20, or 22, is such that it will, indeed, pass through the openings 18 in the plurality of cards 16; and moreover it is such that it may be temporarily placed over at least the outer end 28 of a merchandising display peg 30.

[0040] Thus, in its broadest sense, the present invention provides for the combination of a plurality of card-mounted articles and a mounting tube, as is shown, for example, at 10 in FIG. 4.

[0041] The system of the present invention also includes the mounting peg 30. The manner in which the mounting peg 30 is placed on a mounting board is outside the scope of the present invention, and is unnecessary to be described. Typically, a mounting peg 30 will have an upturned end 32 which will pass through an opening in a mounting board, and function as an anchor for the peg on the mounting board.

[0042] In any event, it can be seen especially by reviewing the sequence of events as they are shown in FIGS. 3 through 6, that the plurality of card-mounted articles 14 on their respective cards 16 may be lifted from the container 12 on the hollow mounting rod 20, or 22, and moved as a unit towards the merchandising display peg 30 and onto the outer end 28 thereof. Thereafter, as particularly indicated in FIGS. 5 and 6, the cards 16 may be slid off the hollow mounting rod 20, or 22. Thereafter, the hollow mounting rod is withdrawn away from the merchandising display peg 30 so as to leave the plurality of card-mounted articles 14 and their respective display cards 16 hung thereon.

[0043] A further feature of the present invention is to include the container 12 as part of the system for displaying a plurality of card-mounted articles on a merchandising display peg. Obviously, as can be seen particularly in FIG. 3, the system permits the plurality of cards 16 to be lifted and moved simultaneously away from the container 12.

[0044] Accordingly, depending on the packing and mounting facilities and equipment in the manufacturing facility, or the facility where the card-mounted articles are mounted to their cards and/or placed in their containers 12 in any event, it is possible that the hollow mounting rod 20, or 22, has been passed through the openings 18 of the plurality of cards 16 prior to the cards having been placed in the container. In that sense, therefore, FIG. 3 may be considered to illustrate either placement of a plurality of cards 16 into a container 12, or removal of the plurality of cards 16 away from the container 12.

[0045] Typically, however, the packaging apparatus available where the card mounted articles 14 are being packaged into their containers 12 is such that a plurality of cards is placed into the container, and it is sealed.

[0046] That being the case, it is appropriate in keeping with another aspect of the present invention to modify the container somewhat, to permit placement of the hollow mounting rod 20, or 22, into place by passing it through the openings 18 in the plurality of cards 16, after the plurality of cards 16 has been placed into the container 12.

[0047] To that end, therefore, the container 12 has a foldable portion 40 which is formed at at least one end thereof. The typical container also has end flaps 42 and side flaps 44, as shown in FIGS. 1, 2, and 3.

[0048] Here, the provision is that before the container 12 is closed and sealed, the foldable portion 40 is kept open, or is opened, and the hollow mounting rod 20, or 22, is passed through the openings 18 in the plurality of cards 16. Thereafter, the foldable portion 40 of the container 12 is closed, so as to permit the container to be sealed.

[0049] Alternatively, it is possible to open the foldable portion 40 of the container 12 while retaining the plurality of cards 16 still in the container, and placing the hollow mounting rod 20, or 22, by passing it through the openings 18 in the cards 16, when the container 12 is being opened at the retail merchant's store for purposes of re-stocking the merchandising display peg 30. In other words, it is possible that the container 12 may be shipped without the hollow mounting rod 20, or 22, being placed therein, with the hollow mounting rod being put into place just prior to the plurality of cards 16 being lifted out of the container 12.

[0050] In a further alternative embodiment of the present invention, at least one end of the hollow mounting rod 20, or 22, may be flared, such as is shown at 50 in FIG. 2. This may help to prevent the cards 16 from slipping off the hollow mounting rod in the event that it is not held quite level, but the flare 50 must not be so much as to preclude passage of the cards 16 and their respective openings 18 past the flared portion of the hollow mounting rod.

[0051] Typically, the hollow mounting rod 20 is formed of a plastics material, and typically it is extruded. Suitable materials may be polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyvinylchloride, vinyl, and co-polymers or mixtures thereof.

[0052] There has been described a system for placing a plurality of card-mounted articles on a merchandising display peg for retail sale, and particularly the hollow mounting rod which permits the system to function.

[0053] Other modifications and alterations may be used in the design and manufacture of the apparatus of the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the accompanying claims.

[0054] Throughout this specification and the claims which follow, unless the context requires otherwise, the word “comprise”, and variations such as “comprises” or “comprising”, will be understood to imply the inclusion of a stated integer or step or group of integers or steps but not to the exclusion of any other integer or step or group of integers or steps. 

What is claimed is:
 1. In combination, a plurality of card-mounted articles and a hollow mounting rod; wherein each card carries merchandise mounted thereon for retail display and sale; wherein each card has an upper region and an opening through the thickness of the card in said upper region, whereby each card is adapted to be hung on a merchandising display peg for retail display of said card-mounted article by having a merchandising display peg passed through said opening; wherein said hollow mounting rod is passed through the openings in said plurality of cards, whereby said plurality of cards maybe lifted and moved simultaneously by lifting and moving said hollow mounting rod; and wherein said hollow mounting rod has a cross-sectional configuration and size such that it will pass through said openings in said plurality of cards, and such that it may be temporarily placed over at least the outer end of a merchandising display peg.
 2. A system for placing a plurality of card-mounted articles on a merchandising display peg for retail sale, comprising a merchandising display peg and the combination of claim 1; whereby said plurality of card-mounted articles may be placed on said merchandising display peg by placing a first end of said hollow mounting rod over at least the outer end of said merchandising display peg, sliding said plurality of cards off said hollow mounting rod, and withdrawing said hollow mounting rod away from said merchandising display peg so as to leave said plurality of card-mounted articles hung thereon.
 3. The system of claim 2, further comprising a shipping container in which said plurality of card-mounted articles has been placed for shipping and storage purposes, and from which said plurality of cards may be lifted and moved simultaneously.
 4. The system of claim 3, wherein said hollow mounting rod has been passed through the openings of said plurality of cards prior to said cards having been placed in said container.
 5. The system of claim 3, wherein said container has a foldable portion in at least one end thereof, wherein said foldable portion faces said openings in said cards when said plurality of cards is placed in said container; whereby said plurality of cards may be placed in said container before said hollow mounting rod is passed through the openings of said plurality of cards.
 6. The system of claim 5, wherein said hollow mounting rod is passed through the openings of said plurality of cards prior to said foldable portion being closed so as to permit said container to be sealed.
 7. The system of claim 5, wherein said hollow mounting rod is passed through the openings of said plurality of cards after said container has been unsealed and said at least one foldable portion has been folded down so as to permit access to said openings of said plurality of cards.
 8. The combination of claim 1, wherein said hollow mounting rod has a circular cross-section.
 9. The combination of claim 1, wherein said hollow mounting rod has a triangular cross-section.
 10. The combination of claim 1, wherein said hollow mounting rod is flared at at least one end thereof.
 11. The combination of claim 1, wherein said hollow mounting rod is extruded from a plastics material chosen from the group consisting of polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyvinylchloride, vinyl, and co-polymers and mixtures thereof. 